Burnt Offerings
by Nuit Songeur
Summary: Priest Seto pays homage to a magnificent creature that saved his life many years ago.


**A/N:** This is my Mizushipping fic that I'm entering into the YGO Fanfiction Contest on here. When the pairing was announced, an idea immediately sprang to mind and gave birth to this. I hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! DM

**Warnings:** Slightly season five spoilers. Set before the Ancient Egypt arc takes place. And, notice the rating. And, finally, account for typos.

**Betas:** LuckyLadybug and MythCreatorWriter

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**Burnt Offerings  
**By: Nuit Songeur

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Priests didn't slink through the night, avoiding detection. It was not their duty to sneak through the city, carrying a wrapped bundle of incense and wheat. But it was on this night that Priest Seto did. No one was to know about these secret trips. No one could ever find out about the nights when Priest Seto humbled himself in a sack cloth tunic with a hood and face covering.

No one could know. Otherwise, he'd be executed for treason and blasphemy.

The city was deadly quiet on these summer nights. Silent, except for the occasional scurrying of a rodent. Or, perhaps, a beggar since he was in the impoverished part of the city. Seto could never tell the difference between the two.

A small breeze blew, chilling the dry Egyptian night. It ruffled Seto's sack cloth, and his head coverings almost fell. Before they could, he snatched them up and quickly fitted them back on.

No one could see his face.

He wore cheaply-made cloth slippers that kicked up dust motes in the sand whenever he walked, instead of the imperial, high court sandals that easily marked him as one of the pharaoh's. All the gaudy gold jewelry he usually had was hidden beneath the mattress in his bedchamber. The one exception, however, was a ring securely tucked away in his burlap pack. But he had to be careful; these peasants would notice the shining metal without a problem and then attack like the greedy dogs they were, even at night while they all slept.

Seto took cover in shadows and behind terra cotta buildings with reed-thatched roofs, edging his way between brittle walls. Few were out at this late hour which made it easier for him to slip out of the city, unnoticed. From the time he left the palace grounds, it took a matter of mere minutes for Seto to reach the city's outer wall and escape into the wide open Egyptian desert. He didn't have very far to go; his destination was just beyond the pyramid that harbored his shadow monsters. Hidden behind his pyramid was a stone slab. Now one would see it, because no one came out here.

Seto approached the monument, surveying its artwork with critical eyes. The face of the structure depicted a rather crude rendition of a ferocious beast. The very same beast that some claimed terrorized vulnerable villages with the cover of night. Seto paid no mind to these accusations; he'd seen the creature before, and it didn't terrorize, only deliver punishment to those deserving accordingly.

Below the carving was an inscription:

_The one with blue eyes  
__And the shining, pearly white scales  
__Ignites the just flames._

His eyes continued to trace the contours of the image as he brushed some sand off the surface. The skill of the artisan was below mediocrity but Seto couldn't have commissioned a more professional artist for the work. Everything had to be secret.

No one could know.

In fact, Seto remembered ordering for the peasant's execution after he finished the structure. He couldn't risk having the idiotic man spreading rumors about the High Priest Seto. Couldn't risk it. It was too dangerous.

He set to work, placing the offerings he had brought into an earthen bowl plastered to the bottom of the shrine. First, he lit the incense, igniting a small flame with two stones of flint. While it burned, Seto kneeled before the altar, after placing the wheat and gold ring around the bowl, and chanted soft hymnals of praise, glory, and obedience.

It was blasphemous to the gods. Some would call it treason. But every month on the night of the full moon, he would come, bearing offerings. Sometimes a sacrifice. But, he would always come with something for the magnificent white dragon. Some feared it, but Seto owed it his life. Many years ago, the dragon had saved him, protected him from thieves, and so he worshipped it.

Each night he did this, Seto would always find himself hoping that something would happen. That, maybe, the altar would stir and the dragon would come forth, rewarding him for his steadfastness. But, one did not worship for profit, so Seto would never leave disappointed.

This night seemed different, though. As he chanted, the very air seemed to thrum with his rhythm. It was as if it were _alive_. Seto continued in his hymns, paying not attention to these distractions until the ground itself rumbled in sync to the praises. Seto paused, glancing up at the shrine to see it glowing. He froze, fear and awe chilling his veins.

After a moment, the glowing subsided and was replaced by a shimmering portal that led the way to open night sky. Curiosity warmed his frozen veins as he cautiously stood up and approached the portal. He reached, with his right hand, until the very darkness sucked him into oblivion.

Then he was falling. Just falling, never landing. The thrill almost made his heart stop.

_Your faith has been acknowledged_, resounded a deep, almost ancient feminine voice.

_As desired, you shall be rewarded. Greatly rewarded._

Seto said nothing, his tongue unable to form a response.

_To the west of the Nile is a small cave. In it is your reward. It shall last until dawn, when the light of the sun penetrates the cave's darkness._

His heart was beating, pumping vitality through his veins. He was almost there.

_Go now, my child, and reap the reward I have given you._

When Seto opened his eyes, he found himself standing before the shrine as if nothing had happened. The night was still, quiet and the incense still smoldered. There was no rumbling, no chanting. Nothing.

But something had happened.

Seto quickly headed west, anxious to enjoy his treasures before sunrise. To the west of the Nile… A small cave…

It wasn't long before he stumbled upon a ravine, small enough where it would have been hidden in broad daylight. At least, Seto guessed; he only had the dim moonlight to guide him.

"_Come this way… I am waiting for you… My priest…_" Seto followed the faint, almost ethereal voice that was unmistakably female into a crevice in the ravine wall. A small cavern. He gazed into its depths only to have sheer blackness pressing against his eyes. Soft hands, pale when he looked down, gently tugged at his arms and sackcloth. Suddenly, the sackcloth was gone and the warm hands caressed his chest. He was being pulled… by _her_.

All of a sudden, everything was her. She was the world, the essence of life and vitality. She was the Sun and the River Nile. She was the air and the earth . She was energy— life, love, death. Everything. Especially heat. And beauty.

_Kisara._

Kisara was heat and beauty combined. Kisara wasn't merely the world but the axis to which it revolved around. She was his prize, his reward for many years of loyalty and servitude.

A fitting treasure, because all Seto wanted was her.

His hands were reaching out until they brushed against her hair and cradled her face. His fingers stroked her cheeks, her nose.

"Kisara…" he breathed. The name on his tongue seemed to alleviate a heavy burden on his chest that he had not felt before.

"My priest… Seto," she whispered in turn. He held her face closer until his searching lips eagerly found hers.

Dawn came all too soon when Seto blearily opened his eyes to see that he was lying in his bed back at the palace. He rolled over, expecting another person to be beside him. There was none.

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I hope you enjoyed! Please review!

_**-NuitSongeur**_


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